Kookaburras crush Malaysia

The Australian men's hockey team has demolished Malaysia 7-1 in the final of the International Challenge tournament in Sydney.

It was the Kookaburras' second four nations tournament win in seven days after their victory over South Africa last weekend.

Jamie Dwyer and Adam Commens scored twice for Australia, however it was Michael Brennan who played a starring role.

Brennan netted the opening goal of the match before making the final pass in goals to Jamie Dwyer and Michael McCann.

And when Commens converted a penalty corner late in the first half the Kookaburras were laughing with a 4-0 half-time lead.

The visitors clawed one back when Boon Huat Chua scored in the opening 30 second of the second half.

But any chance of a Malaysian comeback were killed off when Troy Elder goaled two minutes later for a 5-1 lead.

Commens and Dwyer then grabbed their doubles to complete the rout for the Kookaburras.

Kookaburras coach Barry Dancer said he was pleased with Brennan's form.

"I think we saw more of the vintage Michael Brennan today," he said.

"There were some plays when he broke through the midfield and we also saw some elements of his skill level that probably two or three games ago he was concerned about."

The Kookaburras will name the squad to Europe within the next two weeks, and Dancer said the selection process would be difficult.

"Certainly the teams this week presented a more difficult challenge compared to Canberra. With that in mind, we've overcome better opposition this week, so that's a good sign of our progress," Dancer said.

"There was more cohesion today and more consistent control, which is one of the things we've been aiming for since we started in Canberra. I think it's made it more difficult with the last eight matches. The squad has grown and become more even after this fortnight."

In other action, South Africa edged India 1-0 in the play-off for third place.